


firelight

by baeconandeggs, behkhoon



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Derogatory Words, Happy Ending, M/M, Minor Character Deaths, Scientific, Violence, X-EXO, cloning, powers, slight angst, slight gore
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-13
Updated: 2020-05-13
Packaged: 2021-03-02 23:00:28
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,257
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24154699
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/baeconandeggs/pseuds/baeconandeggs, https://archiveofourown.org/users/behkhoon/pseuds/behkhoon
Summary: Chanyeol wakes up in the middle of a police raid with no knowledge of the place he's in or why he's chained up.
Relationships: Byun Baekhyun/Park Chanyeol, Kim Jongin | Kai/Oh Sehun
Comments: 16
Kudos: 76
Collections: BAE2020





	firelight

**Author's Note:**

  * For [glitzyeol](https://archiveofourown.org/users/glitzyeol/gifts).



> **Recipient:** glitzyeol  
>  **Disclaimer: baeconandeggs/the mods is/are not the author/s of this story. Authors will be credited and tagged after reveals.** The celebrities' names/images are merely borrowed and do not represent who the celebrities are in real life. No offense is intended towards them, their families or friends. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. No money is being made from this fictional work. No copyright infringement is intended.
> 
> A/N at the end

  
Chanyeol jolts awake, as the alarm blares into the empty hallway in front of him. His head throbs painfully to the piercing sound and the jumbled shouts. Before moving a hand to his head, the metal restraint holds him back. He stands upright and is chained to a metal table whose surface shocks his skin with ice. A red light douses the room in an eerie glow while a deafening crack is heard just outside the room. Chanyeol turns white as a sheet, as a blood curdling scream pierces the sound of the alarm followed by a flash of light and a corresponding _BOOM_ which reverberates through the building. The smell of burning flesh causes his stomach churn and he resists the urge to vomit, as he tries to think of a way to get himself off the table and into hiding. He feels a familiar heat pool into his restrained hands and after a few moments he falls to the ground with a _thud_. 

He scrambles behind a flipped table and hears various instruments follow him while his skin is pulled toward the chords and patches attached to his body. He hears the heavy footfalls of people pass the destroyed wall in front of him, as he stifles a yelp after ripping the various devices from his arms and chest. His heart pounds like a drum while his head continues to throb. Feeling the steady beat of his brain, he tries to remember what got him into this mess, as he hears another stampede pass the room he is in. He peeks over the table to see his mirrored image before meeting the eyes of a beautiful stranger with snow-like hair. Chanyeol ducks behind the table out of embarrassment and fear. “I think there’s one over there.”

His heart freezes after hearing a soft _pop_ , smoke swallows his frame. A hand covers his mouth, and he thrashes against the newest figure.

“Shut up!” they whisper, tugging him closer to keep any noise from escaping his lips. “I’m gonna get us out of here, but you have to be quiet, or they _will_ find us.”

Chanyeol struggles against the unknown man who holds him close. “Shut up, or we’re both dead!”

Meeting the eyes of the beautiful stranger, he stills and they offer a small smile. Chanyeol disappears in an instant clutching onto the other figure.

“FUCK!” Chanyeol curses while curling into a ball protecting his abdomen from further pain. “Fuckfuckfuckfuck-”

A hand covers his mouth quickly while he continues to curse. The heat begins to cocoon Chanyeol as he thrashes on the ground. He hears another _pop_ and sees more smoke, as he attempts to open his eyes. “He’s burning- I don’t think I can-”

“We need a healer-” light radiates from someone’s hand, as it illuminates the rips from the hospital gown and the oozing gashes on Chanyeol’s stomach. The smell that surrounds him is familiar and makes him dry heave. “Shit, that looks really bad-”

“I’ll scout for Yixing. Just keep him quiet before someone hears-”

“FUCK, OH GOD-” a different hand slaps itself against Chanyeol’s mouth, as he begins to convulse from the heat and pain. A slight breeze caresses his face in an attempt to cool him down.

“I’m sorry I can’t do more for you-” 

“Hurry, Jongin! It fucking burns-” a cloud of smoke.

“Stay with me big guy,” a new voice mumbles when Chanyeol feels a gentle wind hit his face. He teeters on the edge of consciousness as cool hands dig into the open wound. He flinches, as cool fingers poke and prod at his insides; he feels something spilling from it. Chanyeol sees a faint blue light and worried faces, as he drifts off.

“Xing you idiot…” a sob.

“We are the remaining...have to find…”

“Do you think we should?”

Chanyeol wakes to a worn down ceiling. His midriff is itchy, and he looks down to see gauze wrapped around him as if he were a mummy in a casket. He grunts as he attempts to sit up to no avail. “Oh, you're awake. Don't move, you're not fully healed yet.” A familiar silver-haired male walks up to him in a similar hospital gown except he only has a few dirt patches on it. His face is puffy and he wipes the remaining liquid from his eyes. “How are you feeling?”

“Water,” he croaks, as he tries to sit up again. With a light push, he's back onto the lumpy bed. He turns his head to get a look at his surroundings. An extremely barren room save for the mound of food on the counter and a couch with a lanky male sprawled across a couch with his head in another’s lap. There’s a small TV in the corner that’s turned off or maybe broken.

“I'll get you your water, just lay back down,” the beautiful male saunters away and the chatter resumes. Chanyeol looks at the small group of individuals wearing the same hospital gowns with varying degrees of burns and rips. He feels an ache around his midriff and with curious fingers, he nudges the bandages along his gut only to have them blown away by a swift breeze. 

“Yixing, would be very mad if you do that,” a soft voice sniffles from across the room. The wind caresses his face, as the silver-haired man returns with water and helps to prop him up on some pillows.

“I’m Baekhyun, you?”

After a few generous gulps, “Chanyeol.”

“You’re the newest one, huh...Do you remember anything from last night?”

“I don't remember much, but the heat...and the pain…” he responds, placing a gloved hand to his head. “It was...? Why are these-”

“You get really toasty when you're distressed,” the same soft voice responds and the wind rushes through his ears like a child’s laugh. They hold up their wrapped hands and wave. “Sehun. We just wanted to make sure you wouldn’t burn any of us as we assisted, Xing.”

“They called me Kai, but my real name is Jongin,” another voice calls near Sehun. “Sorry ‘bout the splint. I didn't know that would-”

“Splint? What…?” Chanyeol murmurs feeling the temperature rising within him. A cool breeze finds its way toward him once again.“What happened? Where are we?”

“The lab we were held in was raided. We escaped before-”

“They killed all of us, so now we gotta figure out what the hell is going on. We’re at my family’s old shed of a house in the middle of nowhere,” Jongin finishes, as he teleports to the mound of food on the counter. Grabbing an energy bar from the top, he appears in front of Chanyeol with a small smile. “Here.”

“Thanks,” he replies with a sheepish grin. “You all have powers?”

Sehun laughs quietly as Jongin sits next to him. “Yeah, we have some _unique_ abilities. I control the wind and Jongin teleports. Baekhyun can turn the light on and off and I’m going to assume you wield fire. Is that correct?”

Chanyeol isn’t sure how to respond, but something inside of him ignites at the mention of fire. Baekhyun playfully shoves Sehun before sitting on the lumpy mattress closer to the fire wielder. “Do you remember anything before or in the lab?” Baekhyun scoots back till he hits the wall which causes his feet to dangle; Chanyeol finds it oddly endearing.

“It’s all a big blur, I...I can’t quite…” Chanyeol’s cheeks turn red; his back begins to ache and he can feel something puncturing his spinal column. He sees a black vial in his mind’s eye. “I kind of remember...this procedure...I don’t really remember much, but the feeling is still there.”

Sehun and Jongin share a look. “Well, Sehun and I made plans to go back to the lab to gather info on the tests they performed.”

Baekhyun frowns. “We barely escaped with our lives and you want to go back? Do you have some kind of death wish?”

“Going back and learning more about our situation would be better than staying here and waiting for God knows what-”

“You don’t even know if they’re still lookin-”

“You don’t know either, and I think it’ll be beneficial if we-”

“You’re not going, dammit!!” Baekhyun yells with his hands balled into fists on his lap. “Our team is already...I can’t- I don’t want-” he quivers as tears fall from his eyes. “I saw what those people dressed in black did, okay?! Our androids were also- I can’t- I’m not going to let that happen to you and Sehun.”

They stay silent for a moment and Chanyeol fidgets, as he remembers a scream and a clap of thunder. “How many of us are there?” he murmurs fidgeting with the edges of the gauze. Sehun sends a nippy gust.

“Twelve, before the raid...four now,” Jongin mumbles. “You’re lucky I found you before anything terrible happened.”

“I think I saw one of your members then, or at least heard them...A flash of light and a loud _boom_...The air was electric and everything was burning and the smell-” Chanyeol gags and he doubles over in pain. The temperature rises once more and Baekhyun places a hand on his thigh to comfort him. 

“Chanyeol?” he envisions himself back at the lab chained to the cool, metallic table. “Chanyeol, you’re here.” He smells burning flesh and his palms begin to sear from the heat, he shuts his eyes trying to focus on Baekhyun’s voice. “We’re safe, Chanyeol.” There's something burning and a soft puff of air caresses his face. A clap of thunder, the scream, and a face appears like a distorted reflection of himself. He can feel his back rip open, as instruments prod his spine. “Chanyeol?” 

Baekhyun searches Chanyeol’s wide eyes for the source of his pain. “We’re here. You’re here. We're not in that god awful lab anymore. We’re free. You’re free.”

Baekhyun places a kiss on Chanyeol's hair before pulling him close and holding him, as the fire wielder cries into his chest.

Chanyeol awakes to Jongin and Sehun laughing. Baekhyun is in the corner grinning to himself, as he opens a couple cans of chicken noodle soup with a concentrated beam of light. “Hey, you’re up!”

“Y’all are loud,” Chanyeol yawns while carefully sitting up in his bed.

“How ya feelin’?”

“Better now that my innards are inside me and not out for the world to see,” he jokes, gaining a dirty look from Jongin who had a spoonful of soup in his mouth. “Sorry,” he giggles.

“We gotta start training you to use your powers properly,” Sehun murmurs while taking a hefty bite of his granola bar and slurping some soup. “Those people in black seemed to know we had powers and of course the androids that cared for us...We have to train.”

“Let’s do that after breakfast, Sehun.” Baekhyun stirs his can of cold soup.

Chanyeol falls on his butt just outside of the groups’ small and rundown hideout. “Your power is literally cheating!”

“Hey, not my fault I was blessed with teleportation, m’kay?” Sehun giggles from the sidelines, as Baekhyun rests his head on Sehun’s shoulder. “Now try that move again, but with fire?”

“I don’t know how to like...make it come,” Chanyeol gestures with his hands to make a point. Baekhyun snickers and the fire wielder shoots him a dirty look. The latter attempts to stifle his laughter to no avail.

“Not my fault, you walked right into that one,” he guffaws, as Chanyeol begins to pout.

“Sometimes it helps to envision your element where you want it to appear,” Sehun suggests. Chanyeol stands with the help of Jongin and dusts himself off.

Taking a calming breath, he closes his eyes to focus on the palm of his hand. As the heat begins to sear his hand, he opens his eyes to find a small flame levitating over his palm. “Holy shit! I did- _Ack!_ ”

“Keep your head in the game, Chanyeol!” Jongin snickers while bringing his fist back to his side.

“That was a total cheap shot,” he grumbles. “But, I figured it out!”

“Well, sorta,” Sehun cackles, as Baekhyun sends the fallen wielder a thumbs up with a sheepish smile. “It’s a lot better than a glowing red palm!”

“You’ll get it, don’t fret,” Jongin offers a hand to help him up. Chanyeol stands up after dusting himself off again. “None of us mastered our powers on the first day. Damn, you should’ve seen the mess we made at the lab!” he laughs, as he prepares to face Chanyeol once more. “It was our first time meeting each other and the trainers just told us to do whatever we could to manifest our power.”

“Fuck, when Kris literally farted and levatated,” Baekhyun howls with laughter, as Chanyeol falls to the ground after a well-placed kick to his sore abdomen; his palm smoking slightly. “I nearly lost my mind! And Jongin, when your fucking hand just appeared on the other side of the room, and we all screamed bloody murder!”

“Okay, that shit actually hurt, so it wasn’t that funny,” he rolls his eyes, as he tries not to laugh along. Chanyeol readjusts himself to listening to their stories with wide eyes absorbing the different tales while rubbing his aching midriff.

“When we all thought Luhan’s power was jutting out his forehead vein before he actually lifted a pencil from the table,” Sehun joins in. “But holy shit, remember when Kyungsoo first-”

“Oh, fuck that was terrifying. He got so fed up with how loud we were, he stomped on the ground and we all just flew!” Jongin gasps. “Then Jongdae joined and all of the Pokémon references!”

Chanyeol tunes them out, as he watches their faces light up. Hearing the various horror stories, he found himself smiling along with them. He could imagine a Zitao, a wielder of time, freaking out over finally using his power but everyone saying that nothing had changed. He could see a small figure, Kyungsoo, scowling, as he pushed three ton boxes across a room while androids pelted him with bean bags. He could see their leader Junmyeon gasping for air, as his holding cell slowly filled with crystal clear water. He could see Jongdae as the androids mirrored his power against him, burning him to a crisp as they trampled his body to find their next victim. He can smell smoke in the air- “Chanyeol!!”

Baekhyun has pinned him to the ground and holds his face in his hands. Chanyeol is smoldering on the ground, as Sehun uses the wind to vacuum the flames away and Jongin teleports back and throws a bucket of ice, cold water on him and the light wielder. Chanyeol’s temperature normalizes almost immediately. “S-sorry,” he chokes out.

Baekhyun gets off of him and offers him a small smile before helping him up. He pushes his bangs back and wipes away the excess water from his face. “It’s not your fault. It’s gonna be alright. We just gotta work on keeping your emotions in check.”

Jongin sits next to Sehun on a pristine patch of grass as Baekhyun pushes Chanyeol around the small and singed field in front of them. He giggles while the other trips over his feet and that portion of grass turns black in an instant. “Do you think he’ll get the hang of it soon?”

“He sure is learning fast, so there’s no real way of knowing,” he murmurs, as he lays his head down on Jongin’s lap. “I miss everyone.”

“I do too,” he cards his fingers through Sehun’s soft black hair. Baekhyun laughs boisterously, as Chanyeol sends him a death glare only to be temporarily blinded. “We have to do something about everything that’s going on.”

“FUCK YOU AND YOUR STUPID SUN POWER BAEKHYUN!!” Chanyeol roars, getting up from the ground and tackling Baekhyun while he continues to laugh.

“You’re right. We need to move on or hope Chanyeol will be strong enough to join us…” Sehun whispers to the wind. Jongin looks down and traces a line from Sehun’s nose to his forehead then swiping his thumb over his cheek gently. 

“How long are you willing to wait?” Jongin bends down to peck his nose. Sehun sits up.

“I don’t think I’ll be able to sit still for much longer...I want to know- I need to know why-” Jongin presses his lips against his.

“We’ll leave tonight,” he grumbles, as he gives Sehun another kiss. Baekhyun continues to laugh exuberantly.

Chanyeol awakes to crying. “Is everything alright?” He swings his legs over the side of the mattress with some difficulty. The room seems bigger than he remembers. A pile of clothes sit folded by their food supply, which looks larger than he remembers. “Baekhyun?”

Baekhyun is at the foot of the couch crying into the cushions while holding a pair of hospital gowns and a scrap of paper. Chanyeol pulls the latter into a hug and lets him cry into his chest. He rubs circles into his back and rests his chin on top of his soft, silvery hair. After a few moments, his cries begin to dull and his breathing eases. 

As Baekhyun begins to fall asleep, Chanyeol picks him up and lays him out and uses the runaways’ gowns as a makeshift blanket. Sitting at the head of the couch, Chanyeol runs his fingers through Baekhyun’s hair continuing to lull the latter into a deeper sleep. He notices a piece of paper caged behind lithe fingers. Carefully, he reaches for the note and is able to read it after a few tugs.

  
_Dear Baekhyun,_

_I’m sorry if this note upsets you in any way. Sehun and I are leaving for the lab. Before we left, I picked up some spare clothes and a few other things I know you like. Keep yourself safe and I promise you, we’ll be back in tip top shape with answers._

_P.S. Don’t cheat when you spar with Chanyeol. You’re a real dick when you do that, he’s a newbie so let him get a feel for things._

_—Jongin_

Chanyeol felt responsible for their leaving. He felt terrible that he couldn’t remember anything useful. Determination floods his senses as he heads outside to practice controlling his element.

He steps into the cool morning. Closing his eyes, he relishes the warmth emanating from above. A few moments later, he imagines heat pooling into his hand until it begins to sear comfortably in his palm. After a few minutes, he opens his eyes to see a small flame levitating over his outstretched hand. Mesmerized by the flame, he brings it closer to his face to inspect it. It reminded him of a candle’s light as it blazes with vitality. He closes his eyes once more to focus on the heat in his palm. Hearing a soft crackling, Chanyeol inspects the handful of flames he holds. 

His hand is on fire, but there’s no pain. Exhilaration and pride swell within him, as he throws the ball of heat toward the small patch of grass; it burns with vibrancy and fervor.

As Chanyeol continues to play with his power, an idea pops into his head. He runs back into the hideout and pulls an outfit from the pile of new clothes. Changing into the all-black ensemble, he takes his gown outside and places it a few yards away. He conjures the small fireball in his hand within seconds. With a grin, he throws the flames at the heap of cloth hoping for a connection. The blaze incinerates the material leaving a pile of ash for the wind to pick up. Chanyeol lets out a cry of excitement and he goes back inside to find more things to test his abilities on.

Baekhyun awakes to the smell of smoke and the sound of shouting. He sits up alert, as the effects of sleep leave his system almost instantly. He can see a room in flames, as Kris claws his way toward him with pain etched into his face. He can smell his friend’s burning flesh while he reaches out to Baekhyun with urgency until the flames eat him and the android advances toward him. Another cry from outside snaps him out of his reverie. “Chanyeol?!”

He flips the runaways’ gowns off of him and rushes outside to find Chanyeol laughing with glee. “What’s going on? Are you okay?!”

Chanyeol stops and stares into Baekhyun’s eyes with joy. “Look!”

Baekhyun notices the small piles of ash. “Holy shit. Did you do all of this?”

Chanyeol nods his head quickly with a large grin spreading across his face. “Let’s spar.”

Baekhyun stands across from Chanyeol decked out in his new, all-black ensemble. Doing some mild stretches, he gets into position holding his hand out to his side. He blows this bangs out his eyes and a grin spreads across his face. “Ready?”

“No cheap shots, Baekhyun. That shit is not fair,” Chanyeol mumbles while fixing his beret to keep his bangs out of his eyes.

He laughs while eyeing Chanyeol’s poor stance. “Fine, no cheap shots.”

Chanyeol makes the first move. Conjuring a fireball, he throws it toward his opponent which shocks Baekhyun for a moment before he removes all light from Chanyeol’s vision. With no break in his movements, Chanyeol runs up to Baekhyun with flames engulfing his fists. Baekhyun easily dodges the swift punches with only a few singed hairs as a reward. “Fuck, it’s hard to see.”

“That’s kind of the point,” he laughs moving to his next spot, as Chanyeol begins to rely on his ears to pinpoint Baekhyun’s location. Holding his hand to his side once more, the light in Baekhyun’s palm manifests into a rapier. With a snap of his fingers, he restores Chanyeol’s vision disorienting the fire wielder. Baekhyun runs up to him and thrusts the weapon toward his chest stopping right before it pierces the fabric of his chest piece. Chanyeol huffs throwing his fiery fists toward the ground. “One day, I’ll get you.” 

Baekhyun snickers as he drops his hands to his side, the light vanishing. “Maybe, one day.” 

“So, how long were you in the lab,” Chanyeol asks, as he plops his spoon into the half eaten can.

Baekhyun stirs his can before responding. “A while. I was one of the first people they kidnapped. I had Jongdae and Sehun for company. Eventually, more and more people came, but yeah, it was just the three of us against that hell hole,” he murmurs while taking a spoonful of the liquid and letting it fall back into the can. 

“What happened during that time?” Chanyeol sets his can down and sits next to Baekhyun on the couch.

“They fed us and let us socialize with one another. It was kind of like hanging out at a friend’s house except everything was like a hospital. It was completely sterile. We had a schedule where the androids would take our vitals and ask us questions regarding our mood. Eventually, we had training sessions where we would spar the androids. Sometimes, they'd make us fight each other to see how our powers would fare against the others,” Baekhyun grins. “I always had the upper hand in fights, but Tao…he really fucked you up since he controlled time. He was also really good at fighting, so in the few seconds he had, you’d be absolutely wrecked. If you managed to survive that, he'd be extremely weak from exerting himself…” he begins to trail off into thought. His eyes are watering and Chanyeol places a hand on his shoulder. “I saw him...And I couldn’t do anything but watch as they tore him apart...I saw so many of our comrades die and I couldn’t do anything!” he cries.

Chanyeol pulls him into a hug. “You are one of the strongest people I’ve met Baekhyun. Regardless of your past, you continue to fight each day and better yourself. You are so strong, Baekhyun.”

Baekhyun clutches onto Chanyeol, as he wails into the empty house.

“Damn, I don’t think I’ll ever get used to that,” Sehun coughs as they appear in front of the decrepit building. Jongin laughs quietly while holding onto Sehun’s waist for support.

“Okay, just to reiterate, we’re going in, finding information, medicines if possible, and then we’re getting the hell out, right?” Jongin questions while dusting himself off. His heart speeds up while his palms begin to sweat. He pictures their hideout, just in case.

“You got it,” Sehun threads his fingers through Jongin’s. “We got this.”

Jongin nods, as they walk toward the crumbling building; dread pools in their stomachs. Leading them to the feeble structure, he narrows his eyes toward the infrastructure. “It looks almost exactly like how we left-”

“Did you see that…?” Sehun mumbles while tightening his grip. Pressing himself closer to Jongin, he quints at the tower of cameras trying to make out any suspicious shadows that lurk in the dimming sun. 

“Hm?” Jongin follows his line of sight to the ominous cameras. The lenses glow like red eyes. “What?”

“I thought I saw…maybe...I dunno. Sorry,” he holds a hand to his forehead. The wind whistling against his face to help calm him down.

“What did you see, Hun?” Jongin squeezes Sehun’s hand as a form of comfort.

“I thought I saw Kyungsoo.”

“You’re getting better,” Baekhyun huffs as he collapses onto the charred grass with a grin.

“Thanks,” Chanyeol blushes as he falls next to him.

Baekhyun turns to face the latter and his smile grows. Looking back to the sky, he reaches a hand out toward a cloud pretending to grasp it. “We should make a game out of our spar sessions. Wouldn’t that make it more interesting?” 

“What do you mean?” Chanyeol questions while watching Baekhyun’s lithe hand dance with the slight breeze of the day, seemingly controlling the clouds that float above.

“Whoever wins, they get to ask personal questions, or have the other do a task for them…?”

“Sounds lame,” Chanyeol deadpans. Baekhyun shoves the latter, pouting.

“Don’t be an ass. You’re lucky Jongin said to not take any cheap shots, or else you’d be the one going to the market for food in the surrounding area!”

Pretending to cough, Chanyeol sits up. “I-i’m still healing! Also, I could totally do a _shopping_ trip. I don't have to go hunting or whatever...” 

Baekhyun rolls his eyes before staring up at the clouds. “Hunting was just an idea and you’d stick out like a sore thumb while stealing.”

A mischievous grin spreads across his face as Chanyeol heats his palm up ready to surprise the latter on the ground. His hand turns pink from the heat and he presses it onto Baekhyun’s cheek. 

Baekhyun jolts up and frowns. “Chanyeol!”

“Round two!” he laughs while running from the light wielder, as the flames begin to engulf his hands. Lumping the fire into a sphere, he chucks it behind him after hearing quick, crunches of charred grass. 

Baekhyun quickly summons his rapier with a grin, as he follows Chanyeol across the fields.

“What a dumb use of my power…” he grumbles while heating a can of soup in his palm.

Baekhyun laughs while he happily stirs his warm soup. “I think it’s pretty genius. Why didn’t I think of it before, y’know?”

“This is so weirdly humiliating,” he groans.

“Anyways, since I won,” he takes a sip. “I get to ask you a question...”

“Woah, woah wait. I thought heating the can was my punishment for losing.”

“Chanyeol, we’ve been sparring all day today, and I’ve bested you in all of our matches since you’ve been awake. Let me have this!” he pouts while holding his face in his hands. 

“Fine.” Chanyeol tries to hide his blush by turning away from the cute wielder. 

“What was life like before you were taken to the lab?” 

Swishing the contents of the warm can around, Chanyeol sits next to Baekhyun and mulls over his thoughts. “Hmm…”

Baekhyun watches the latter’s eyebrows crinkle in concentration. He follows the curve of Chanyeol’s nose down to his full lips. “I was- Baek?”

He meets Chanyeol’s eyes for a split second before stirring his soup again. Chanyeol winks back causing Baekhyun to blush. He pouts out of annoyance. “Shut up! You're so annoying,” he playfully shoves Chanyeol after setting his soup down next to his feet.

“Well, I was just a normal guy, I guess? I had a studio apartment and used what little money I had to pay for the bills and occasionally I’d go out with friends or out to a bar.”

“Did you have any incidents? You know, something that leads to them capturing you or whatever…”

Chanyeol furrows his brows in concentration. “I...I don’t really remember anything in particular…” He smells burning plastic and shouting. He closes his eyes to latch onto the memory as it hazily reveals itself in his mind’s eye. “Actually, there was this time when I went camping...”

“What about it?”

“I was standing in the middle of the forest, I think.” His heart begins to race. “I just remember being so angry and-” he huffs. _Everything is engulfed in the blaze. The screams._

“Chanyeol, you’re burning up, you need to chill out,” Baekhyun disparages, as he rushes to get a bottle of water from the stolen cooler. “Chanyeol?”

Jolting from his trance, Chanyeol sees the latter’s worried face and a plastic bottle of water. In his hand, the can of soup bubbles over. “Sorry…”

“Don’t apologize. It’s my fault for asking,” Baekhyun mutters, cautiously rubbing circles on his back hoping to ease him back to a normal temperature. He takes the scalding can and sets it on the floor.

Chanyeol opens the bottle with ease and takes a few sips of water while avoiding the latter’s worried gaze; he opts to look at the blank TV. “Can I...can I ask you a question?”

“Yeah, shoot.”

“What was life like for you before the lab?”

Baekhyun freezes for a moment before a sad smile paints itself onto his face. “I was a normal guy. I had a job, supportive parents, a hobby, I met up with my friends every now and then...I didn’t really have any incidents with my power. I mean at the time, I didn’t think I could really do anything with my power besides it being a party trick.” he laughs. “I...I had a really good life, it was peaceful.”

“If you don’t mind me asking...How did you cope with the lab? I mean, hell I don’t really remember my time there and I didn’t spend as much time there, but I’m sure I wouldn’t have taken it lightly, y’know?”

“Yeah, no I hated it, but I did what I could with what I had. I was a fencer and I learned how to concentrate the light into a blade similar to my foil,” his smile blossoms. “Jesus, I was a good fencer. You should’ve seen me out there, woof what a marvel!”

Chanyeol grins along with Baekhyun as he reenacts all of his favorite matches. At some point, Chanyeol finds himself lost in the latter’s story, but he continues to give him his full attention. He just watches Baekhyun’s lips move along with the words that seem garbled; Baekhyun’s eyes sparkle like the stars, as he remembers a funny story with his older brother; Baekhyun’s cheeks flare a pretty pink as he tells of the time he tried to get closer to Jongin and Yixing. Chanyeol slowly reaches to touch Baekhyun’s hand while he feels himself warm up.

“We should get some sleep. We can train tomorrow morning,” Baekhyun yawns while standing up. He stretches his arms, “Yeol?”

“Uh...yeah sleep,” he mumbles, shaking himself from his reverie.

“What was that?” Sehun stiffens, as he hears light footsteps disappear down the winding hall. He holds a few broken clipboards with charred photographs attached. “Jongin, we gotta get the hell out of here. Someone is watching us and I’m sure they’re waiting for the perfect moment to strike-”

“Hun, calm down. I know what you mean. If anything happens, I’ll teleport us both out of here in an instant. Just keep looking for any information-”

Something clatters to the floor. “Jesus!!”

“Hun, are you alright?!” Jongin looks over at Sehun, as he stares out the doorway. “What is it?”

“I-” he’s shaking as his eyes continue to dart around looking for anything that would ease his racing heart and overactive mind. “This place gives me the fucking creeps. I keep seeing familiar faces and I…” Sehun’s eyes begin to water as he slumps to the floor. “Why did we survive…?”

Jongin sets his things down and crouches next to the latter. “I wish I knew, Hun, but we gotta keep going for their sake. We have to keep their memory alive and I know for a fact Yixing wouldn’t appreciate your attitude,” he jokes smoothing Sehun’s hair down and pressing a kiss to his forehead. “I know they're keeping an eye on us from wherever they are. Let's just take what we can and get the hell out of here, alright?” he wipes a few stray tears before offering a hand and a big smile. “We got this.”

“W-we got this,” Sehun repeats as he grabs Jongin’s outstretched palm and pulls him in for a bone crushing hug. “Thanks.”

“Of course,” he mumbles into his lover’s neck. “Let’s get this shit over with.”

The last of the sun’s rays bleed through the cracks of the walls. There’s a chill that settles inside the abandoned lab. A layer of dust and debris settles on the equipment and the various papers that were strewn about the rooms. An old generator hums loud enough for the power to start flicking on within the weak architecture. Sehun and Jongin search for any kind of information that could illuminate why they were taken and tested on.

The teleporter rummages through a pile of clipboards, boxes, and loose leaf papers to find a binder. The names of the members are plastered on the front cover and on the back their names are repeated but with strange symbols interlaced. Upon opening the binder, he finds worn out reports and pictures of friends.

“Jongin come over here!” Sehun yells from down the hallway. “I think this might be it!”

“Just a sec! I found something,” Jongin calls back as he flips through the files. 

  
May 7, 200X  
Lu Han (29)

**Demeanor:** Calm, hesitant, level-headed  
**Observation:** Lu Han is easy-going with the other subjects of EXO. Lu Han prefers to have one or two acquaintances as opposed to all ten of the subjects. Lu Han often levitates small objects (pens, books, etc.) around the room as a source of entertainment as opposed to watching the television.  
With personnel, Lu Han can be aggressive. Lu Han is hesitant around sharp objects even for something as simple as a haircut.  
**Warning:** Be wary of Lu Han’s power (telekinetics). If possible, sedate or blindfold, as a way to soothe Lu Han before administering any tests or taking blood.  
**Experiments/Tests to be Performed:** Movement, Reaction  
**Details:** Series of courses are created to test the agility, flexibility, and reaction to stimuli.  
**Conclusion:** Lu Han is quick to analyze a situation before deciding what is the best and fastest way to complete a task. Of the five runs, Lu Han made little to no error especially when his life was seemingly threatened. Lu Han would make a fine leader and an excellent strategist.  
**Notes:** Try training course with few members of EXO; find how he would fare as a leader.

“I remember doing those tests...what were they for?” Jongin continues to scan the binder full of reports. He stops at an account filed a few days before the raid of the laboratory. “Is this about me…?”

  
June 8, 20XX  
KĀI-088

**Demeanor:** Restless, quiet  
**Experiments/Tests to be Performed:** Social skills, Movement, Reaction  
**Details:** Dr. [redacted] will be asking a series of simple questions regarding the mental, emotional, and physical state of the subject.  
If the subject is up to it, they will then perform the standard movement courses and reactions tests.  
**Conclusion:** 2388-KĀI (for ease of writing: KĀI) is able to understand who they are and how they’re feeling both physically and emotionally. At 11:43, KĀI understood their name and knew the members of their team, as well as the doctors, nurses, and androids in charge of them. KĀI seems to be in a state of depression categorized by slurred speech, fixation on “mistakes” (perceived mistakes) made during tests , restlessness, and general down mood.  
KĀI has plenty of endurance and agility. KĀI shows little to no sign of fatigue after using the ability similar to KAI-88 (for ease of writing: KAI).  
KĀI and KAI are extremely similar physically, but very different in personality and mental well-being.  
**Notes:** Must find a suitable partner for KĀI. Conditions are not stable enough. Put in a safe room with plenty of healthy interaction. Potential candidate for extermination.

“What the fuck is this…” Jongin views the document with wide eyes. “Were they...cloning us?”

“Jongin?!” Sehun shouts again. “You gotta see this!”

Bringing the binder with him, Jongin follows the voice down the hallway. “Hun, where ya at?”

“Over here!” he calls.

“Shit, I don’t remember the lab being this confusing,” he mumbles to himself while squinting at the darkening hallway. He shivers thinking about the records he found in the heavy binder. “Hun, you got a light? I didn’t realize how dark it was getting outside.”

“Just get over here you scaredy cat.”

Jongin follows Sehun’s voice into an unfamiliar room down the hall. “Hun, you gotta read this-”

“I think you should check this out first,” Jongin enters the room and is blinded by the sudden burst of light coming from the various screens. A table is set up in the center with a half finished game of chess while the monitors flicker from one camera to the next with their rainbow hued pictures of the familiar cells.

“Holy shit,” he drops the binder in shock, jogging up to the screens watching the various figures mull about their confinement. “Is that...Junmyeon? Why are these playing over-”

“I think the footage is live,” the other murmurs while shifting his weight. “It’s interesting to see how...miserable they are, huh? Doesn’t it remind you of when you were in there...trapped...alone and scared? I almost feel...bad for them.”

Jongin places a hand on the screen, his eyes glossing over. “Y-yeah…” Memories flood behind his eyelids and he begins to tremble. He takes a few deep breaths in and out, as he attempts to calm his erratic heart. He feels a familiar warmth envelope his body, and he tries to stifle his sobs. 

“Don’t cry...it’ll be over soon,” Jongin opens his eyes and looks back at the screen to see his lover cornered, as familiar faces approach him menacingly. “S-sehun?”

“Hmm?” the latter responds squeezing Jongin lightly. “What’s wrong?”

“You-” the air leaves his lungs. A gust of wind forces him down to his knees and before he could teleport away, he watches his lover knock him out cold.

“Ah, shit!,” Chanyeol curses once he falls to the ground. Baekhyun chuckles as he towers over the latter.

“Almost got me, but alas,” he bends down and offers Chanyeol a hand to help him up, only to get his palm burned. “Bitch!”

“Hey, not my fault you fell for it,” laughing, he gets up and dusts himself off. “Sooo what else is on the list today? Another chase? Some work with elements? Hand to hand combat?”

“How ‘bout we take a breather today? You’ve been working really hard, and I think it’d be good if we had a chance to just mellow out, y’know?”

“It would be nice to take a break from the constant beating…” Chanyeol jokes playfully shoving Baekhyun. “Maybe, you could take me _shopping_ or something.”

“I dunno, you kind of stand out with your goofy expression, bright pink hair, and tall stature...I don’t think it’ll work out,” Baekhyun giggles as he stretches his arms.

“You’re one to talk with your silver ass hair? I dunno, if that’s any better, chief.”

“Shut up,” he huffs, making his bangs fly for a split second. “It would be a good idea to leave soon since the last time supplies were retrieved were a couple weeks ago...but I think it would be best for us to just stay here today.”

“A lazy day...sounds nice,” Chanyeol grins while following the shorter inside. “I call the small pile of sweets!”

“Not if I get there first,” Baekhyun challenges running toward the entrance. He laughs as his legs exert energy they haven’t felt in awhile. He hasn’t felt this light in a long time. Warmth bubbles in his stomach, as he thinks about his younger self running circles around his parents and childhood friends. 

As he nears the door, Chanyeol zooms past him with long, flailing strides. “That’s so unfair!”

“If you got it, flaunt it,” the taller throws a peace sign before crashing through the door. “I won!” he exclaims with heavy breaths. “I didn’t think we were this far away from the door.”

Baekhyun huffs. “I don't think...that's what...the saying...Nevermind. Anyways, we need to go on runs or something that was hellish”

“Tell me about it,” Chanyeol grabs a handful of the fun-size candy bars before collapsing on the couch. Baekhyun gets a bottle of water and watches the latter as he happily chomps into the chocolate. 

Feeling eyes on him, guilt sets in his stomach as he gulps. “You want to share?”

Baekhyun turns his head away just in time, pretending he was playing with the cap of his water. “Huh? What?” he takes a swig to really sell it.

“I asked if you wanted to share?” Chanyeol holds an identical bar to Baekhyun with a small smile on his face. 

Baekhyun stares between the chocolate bar and Chanyeol’s face; his eyes wide and his hand outstretched. Baekhyun points at the latter’s face. “You have a dimple.”

Retracting his hand, Chanyeol tilts his head. “Wh-What?”

“Uh, I meant...uh...you have chocolate on your face haha,” he laughs nervously pretending to wipe away the invisible speck. “You’re so dumb...” Baekhyun trails off, as he rests his hand on Chanyeol’s face, locking eyes with him. His heart races and he feels Chanyeol heat up in a comforting way. 

Chanyeol leans in slowly only for Baekhyun to stand up suddenly. “I-I-I'll uh…I’ll be outside.” 

Chanyeol sits there dumbfounded; his heart racing.

“Idiot! Why did you do that?” Baekhyun chastises. He walks toward the small forest dividing their hideout from the rest of the world. Kicking a rock, he glares at the clear sky. “I should’ve just…” he runs a hand through his hair before looking back to the hideout. Thinking about Chanyeol, he lets the hand fall and lightly grazes his bottom lip. He feels the skin grow taut, as he smiles at the thought of the gangly fire-wielder.

A rustle of foliage alerts Baekhyun and he drops the hand to his side ready to summon his blade. “Who’s there?”

The figure falls from behind the bushes onto the ground with a loud _thud_. “Se-sehun? SEHUN!!”

Sehun gulps in the air, exhausted from his trip. His clothes are tattered and singed at the edges. Dirt marrs his usually pristine skin. “G-get inside!” he coughs out. “W-we need to hide!”

Baekhyun slings Sehun’s arm around his neck and helps him inside.

“Baekhyun! I’m sorry if I overstep- Sehun? What-”

“I just saw him c-come out from th-the clearing. Get something to stop the bleeding, Ch-chanyeol!!!” Baekhyun commands, helping Sehun toward the empty bed. 

“Sh-shut the door!!” he rasps to the tallest, as he falls into the lumpy mattress with a groan. 

Baekhyun pushes his hands on the large gash along Sehun’s side, trying to stop the blood from escaping. His vision blurs. “CHANYEOL!”

Chanyeol quickly rips his shirt and throws the scraps toward Baekhyun, “I’ll try to f-find more.”

“Fuck, Sehun stay with me!” Sehun grimaces while trying to unlatch his marred vest.

“H-here, l-look-” he gasps as Baekhyun shoves the fabric into his wound while applying pressure. “B-binder. You need to re-read it.”

“I will, just...just fucking...just fucking stop bleeding first you dipshit,” Baekhyun growls. Chanyeol rummages feverishly amongst the stockpile Jongin left for them for anything to ease Sehun’s pain.

Chanyeol hands Sehun some water which he hastily chugs, the painkillers working overtime. “Th-they have Jongin.”

Baekhyun furrows his brow. “What?”

Sehun carefully unclasps the binder from his ruined vest and hands it to Baekhyun. “The scientists, they made clones of us, and they took him. I tried to find him, but they surrounded me and...I- seeing Junmyeon again...I-” he cries into his hands.

Chanyeol hovers over Baekhyun’s shoulder, scanning the reports with shock on his face. “Do they...do they have everyone…?”

“I-I don’t t-th-think so…? I-I couldn’t-” he sobs.

“We have to get Jongin,” Chanyeol mumbles.

“I agree, but we need a plan first. Can you go replenish our supplies?”

Chanyeol opens his mouth to protest, but stops when he sees Baekhyun’s face warped in confusion and anger.

“So basically, we’re fighting ourselves…?” Chanyeol wonders aloud. “Would that mean that my clone is also just learning how to control fire?”

“I mean, looking at these reports, yeah,” Baekhyun mumbles while scanning the binder.

“They were created from us, so we should have the slight upper hand since we have been honing our powers longer than they have,” Sehun offers. He carefully prods the cotton attached to his torso. “They just...seem more...pissed off, I guess?”

“What do you mean?”

“They just seem...meaner than us?” Sehun sighs. “Something to do with their creation maybe?”

“Regardless, we gotta make a plan to rescue Jongin. So, how should we go about this?” Baekhyun closes the binder and sets it down next to him. He scans both Chanyeol and Sehun’s faces, and he sighs. “Since what we know is very limited, I think it’d be best for us to go in undetected. All we need to do is get to him, and he’ll be able to get us out without fighting. Sehun, do you know if they have any kind of surveillance?”

“Uh, when we were there we saw this tower of cameras. There might be more surveillance inside...”

“Okay, so we travel carefully.”

“We should probably move bases before we embark, right? Sehun needs more time to heal.”

“I’m perfectly-” Baekhyun gently pokes Sehun’s bandaged torso. “Ne-nevermind.”

“I’ll go scout for a new place then,” Chanyeol huffs as he stands up stretching his long arms. 

“Baek, you should go with him. I’ll pack up our remaining supplies, so we can leave when you get back,” he shoos Baekhyun off the cot with some difficulty. 

“B-but-”

“I’ll be fine!”

The treetops sway softly around them, as the sun falls through the cracks leaving small pockets of bright light on the damp forest floor. The sound of the crackling branches fill their silence, as they trudge through the woods. It’s beautiful and peaceful, but not far enough from the danger that threatens their trio.

“So-”

“So-”

They stop walking to look at one another. They snort before continuing their walk. “I was just going to apologize before y’know Sehun came back all...messy. I didn’t mean to- I guess like- I dunno, I just misread the moment, and I’m really sorry if I made you uncomfortable in any way.”

Baekhyun halts for a moment and watches Chanyeol’s retreating figure. “I...I haven’t...I’m not…”

Chanyeol turns around to see Baekhyun staring at the ground, his bangs covering his eyes. “I’ve never really...encountered this before and...I don’t know how to...go about this.”

“What do you mean?” Chanyeol keeps his distance, but his face is warm and his heart races.

“Don’t make me say it,” Baekhyun mumbles while raising his hands to his face. He seems so small and Chanyeol wants to do nothing more than hold him. Taking a step closer, Baekhyun takes one back trying to maintain their distance. 

“Baek, I really am sorry if I-”

“Would you shut up for like two seconds please?” Chanyeol averts his gaze to the small mound of dirt beside his feet. He analyzes the hell out of it in order to keep himself distracted. “I like you, alright?” he looks up in shock while Baekhyun continues to hide his face. 

Baekhyun takes a step closer and inhales deeply. “I really, really like you, but I’ve never done this before and...and I’m scared. I’m scared of what might happen...especially because...y’know...everything and it’s just...I dunno I…”

Chanyeol closes the space between them and wraps his arms around Baekhyun’s figure. He stays quiet for a few moments letting the latter’s words sink in. “I really, really like you too, and I...understand.” He rests his chin on Baekhyun’s head.

They relish each other’s warmth as the sky turns into gold. Time seems to stop for the two of them while the shadows continue to lengthen.

Baekhyun clears his throat. “Maybe, we should get going.”

“Yeah,” Chanyeol sighs in response, releasing the latter. He stretches for a bit before walking ahead of Baekhyun with a small smile on his face and red cheeks. 

“Thank you,” Baekhyun mumbles. Chanyeol stops to turn around and his smile widens. Holding out his hand, he waits for Baekhyun to catch up to him and they venture deeper into the forest. “When this is all over...do you maybe wanna...get a coffee or something?”

Chanyeol laughs. “I would like that and afterwards I’ll pummel you in a fencing match.”

“I highly doubt that. You can barely even beat me in our sparring matches, what makes you believe you’d win against me in my own element?” Baekhyun laughs while the latter rolls his eyes.

After walking for another hour, they happen upon a cave at the base of the mountain. “Think this is good enough?”

“I think it's great! Far enough away from our current hideout, there’s plenty of room to practice our respective powers, and we’re at the base of a mountain. We can just scavenge for food instead of taking long trips to the market to steal shit. Win-win.”

“We have enough supplies to last us a little over a week, so we can definitely practice hunting before that runs out...Awesome, let’s go back and get, Sehun.”

“Not so fast,” a new voice chimes and the earth rumbles below their feet. Baekhyun whips around to see a shadowy figure on the outskirts of the forest. Summoning a sphere of light, he throws it into the air and sends it toward the voice. A familiar face flinches at the sudden brightness and he is exposed. He’s slim and has a few scars on his cheeks and thanks to the light, he can see a yellowing bruise around his lips. His eyes are dark and hold no malicious energy, but that doesn’t stop Chanyeol from standing his ground with his palms beginning to sear. 

“Who are-”

“Soo,” Baekhyun cries and makes a move to run toward him. 

“Baekhyun no!” Chanyeol holds an arm out to prevent him from getting closer. “I don’t think that’s-” the earth begins to fracture around them. They stumble about trying to find their footing against the rumbling. 

“Hyun, isn’t quite happy with how slow things are progressing, so...it’s time to make another move he said,” the figure drawls as he stands up from his crouched position. “He thought you all would come for your teleporter sooner, but I guess not,” they stomp the ground and suddenly the earth encases itself around Baekhyun, successfully locking him in a dome of clay.

“What do you want from us?” Chanyeol coughs as the dust hangs in the air like smog. 

“I, personally, don’t give two shits about you two, but alas I swing for the other team,” he sighs waving his hand in a circular motion causing the ground to swallow Chanyeol’s legs and arms locking him in place. His body continues to rise in temperature causing the soil to steam and smoke. “I’m just here to take stock of who is left, and if I can somehow get a rise out of you to rescue your friend, that’d be even more ideal,” he chuckles lightly. “Our Sehůn is quite happy to see the teleporter, y’know? Ours was so brutally murdered by those scientists.”

Chanyeol can only stare dumbfoundedly, he can hear Baekhyun pounding at the clay. “You didn’t know? You couldn’t infer from those damn reports your Sehun stole?” Kyungsoo conjures up a knife from the soil and saunters over, and presses it lightly into Chanyeol’s exposed skin.

“Well, they deemed him unworthy of living, so they tore him apart. They dissected him and he was fully conscious through the procedure until he couldn’t handle it anymore. They wanted to see how human we were. Wow, look at me going on a whole villain-esque rant,” he laughs to himself, admiring the thin lines that appeared.

“Why...do _this_ if you don’t care?”

“You gotta support your own kind, y’know? If I’m not there for them...who will be? They just have some sort of...innate need to prove themselves and Hyun just wants a little bit of fun while doing it,” he mumbles and waves his hand toward the dome and balls his hand into a fist. 

“Baekhyun!!” Chanyeol yells upon hearing the latter’s sound of distress. With a swirl of his hands, the fire wielder breaks from his arm restraint and hurls fire toward the male. The clone side steps away with a yawn and sends a block of muck in retaliation. The extra force hits Chanyeol square in the face, but it allows him to free himself and run towards the carefree male. In the split second he had, he imagines Baekhyun and his trusty rapier by his side. He concentrates on his extended hand and his own sword takes form while he lunges at Kyungsoo with a yell. 

Caught off guard, the clone haphazardly constructs a barrier between him and the sword that leaves his forearms slightly scorched; he grimaces at the smell before jumping back into action. He stomps once again and the earth quakes leaving Chanyeol unstable with his sword of flames singeing the leaves around them and leaving tiny sparks across the forest floor. “Fuck!”

The male raises a few walls of earth and uses it to stamp out the brewing fires, while simultaneously deflecting Chanyeol’s erratic movements. Suddenly, a burst of light appears from the dome of clay causing the two to recoil and adjust to the sudden change. Baekhyun glowers at the male with his fingertips caked in dirt and blood. “Goddammit!” Kyungsoo covers his eyes from the increased brightness and stumbles backwards while mumbling curses.

Chanyeol tries to reorient himself and follows the sound of the male’s voice before blindly thrusting his blistering hand forward. He hears a stomach churning _squelch_ and feels something cool against his skin. Chanyeol freezes, as he feels the clone struggle against the hand that impaled his body. “Oh, god, f-fuck!” the male gurgles, once he successfully removes Chanyeol’s bloodied hand from his chest. Dumbfounded, Chanyeol stares at his palms. The clone’s coughs and strained breathing are only background noise to the hammering of his heart in his ears. Soothing hands rest against his shoulders and gently coax him up.

“Shhh...you’re alright, you’re fine,” another pained cry and they suffocate.

“Damn, what took you guys so long- woah what happened?”

Baekhyun helps Chanyeol inside, his mind and body numb from the situation they escaped. “We ran into Soo’s clone.”

Sehun rises from the rickety bed and fetches the medical kit with a few groans. “Jesus, are you alright?”

“We’re fine, just a few knicks and bruises, but we’ll be fine,” Baekhyun gingerly takes it from Sehun and opens it with practiced hands pulling out the cleaning pads and band-aids.

Chanyeol is still shaking as he sits on the couch feeling the dried blood crack against his skin. “Did you... _take_ care of him?”

“Y-yes...They won’t be after us for a bit.”

“We found a new hideout, so I suggest we go there as soon as possible, before they figure out what happened to one of their members. Can you pack up the food and anything else that seems worth taking? I’ll tend to Chanyeol,” he delegates as he gently rubs against the thin lines on Chanyeol’s arms with a cleansing towelette. The latter grimaces and bites his lip. “You doin’ alright?”

“Y-yeah...I’m just...I r-remember the fire from the forest that one day and how it blazed so...vibrantly. I killed people then too. That’s why I was sent to the lab...-th-they wanted me gone, but the scientists took me before they could do anything else.”

“Well, you’re safe now and you’re in control. What happened back there was an act of self-defence and you were completely justified. You’ll be fine. We’ll be fine.”

The trio set off for their new home the next day and ungracefully set their bags down on the cave floor. It’s damp and cool in the shade of their newfound home. There’s a comforting smell of loam and water, as they settle down. Chanyeol chats with Sehun about their walk while he pulls the medical kit out from his bag. He carefully redresses the latter’s wound with new bandages.

“I’m gonna head outside for a bit,” Baekhyun announces, as he stands up.

“Be safe,” Sehun whispers before sending a gentle gust of wind Baekhyun’s way. He nods at the gesture and Chanyeol offers him a smile.

Baekhyun leaves the cave and surveys the land around their home. He spots a figure lying near a few mounds of dirt. Baekhyun grabs the body from underneath the arms and drags it further into the forest. “I know you’re not Soo, but you sure do look and weigh like him,” he jokes quietly. 

Taking a few breaks in between, Baekhyun finds a spot far enough away from their campsite to leave the body. He gathers some nearby branches to cover the body and stands over his handiwork for a moment with his hands clasped listening to the rustling of the leaves.

Baekhyun mulls around the forest for a while. He spots a bush with plenty of berries on it and, by chance, sees a few animals that traipse past. He mentally pats himself on the back for a job well done. Nearing the cave, he crouches near a plot of flowers that have bloomed. Their vibrant colors plant a smile on his thin lips, and he caresses their petals before heading back. 

“You’re back,” Chanyeol grins while Sehun naps in the far corner.

“Yeah, I found some berries nearby and there are plenty of animals to hunt in this area, so we’ll be set once those cans run out,” Baekhyun laughs sitting next to Chanyeol and stealing his water bottle. “I’m sure there’s water nearby, but I have yet to find it.”

“Hmm, maybe an adventure for tomorrow then,” Chanyeol hums while staring at the greenery in front of them. Baekhyun nods and takes a swig of water. With a satisfied noise, he leans against Chanyeol.

Chanyeol leaves the cave in search of firewood while Baekhyun and Sehun set up for dinner. He hums while he gathers the fallen branches and pockets some grass and leaves along the way. It’s golden in the forest and he relishes the peace of greenery that surrounds him. The air is sweet and earthy. The birds chirp from the tree tops and he smiles at their calls. A twig snaps nearby and he whips around to find a deer eyeing him cautiously while the fawn gathers near her leg out of fear. He freezes wishing not to scare them further. Later on, they might need their meat, as awful as that sounded in his head. After a few minutes, they continue on their way leaving the fire wielder to his own devices once again. He collects a few more branches before heading back to the cave.

Breaking the tree line, he spots Sehun lying on the ground near a fire pit with rocks surrounding it. Chanyeol drops his collection of dry wood and runs to Sehun’s side, lifting his head slightly to check if he’s breathing. Thankfully he is and Chanyeol feels his heart rate slow slightly, but looks around for another figure around their campsite. “Fuck,” he mumbles before gently tapping Sehun’s face. 

“Sehun, wake up. Sehun.”

The latter slowly opens his eyes and the air around them swirls. His head lolls for a moment before he’s alert once again. He holds a hand to his head and winces. “What happened?” he asks blearily.

“I don’t know, when I got here you were like this and Baekhyun was gone.” 

“Baek’s gone? Fuck,” he falls from Chanyeol’s arms onto the ground with a _thud_. “Do you think they…?”

“Yeah,” Chanyeol helps him up and into the cave. “We have to get him now. I don’t know if the other clones will be as _kind_ as the one we met yesterday.”

“Baekhyun told me about it and I think you’re right.”

Baekhyun struggles against the ropes that are around him, as he’s dragged toward a familiar holding cell. He continues to thrash against his assailant while they enter the stark white room with a single bed. His eyes tear up as the memories flood his brain in painful waves and he gasps against the gag in his mouth. He feels the searing heat on his skin as the latter holds his wrist tightly with a smirk on his bloodied lip. “Wait here, little light, Baëkhyun will see you soon,” he’s thrown onto the bed and he watches their figure disappear behind the closing door.

He fidgets with the bonds around his hands and wiggles around in hopes of loosening some of the rope while scanning his surroundings. It seems cleaner than when he left it during the raid. The squiggly drawings he made during their free time remind him of his found family. The assaulting smell of disinfectant hangs in the room like burning incense, and he remembers the long days he spent without interaction; the endless white room with its lifeless captive. 

The door _pings_ open to reveal a mirror image of himself with a long scar that travels horizontally across his face. “My, my aren’t you a looker,” they giggle as they seemingly dance over to Baekhyun’s slumped figure on the bed. He shuts his eyes and feels a hand caress his face. “Sorry, if the bed was a little messy, I quite enjoy how cushy it is compared to my cell,” he laughs before lightly tapping his face.

“I want to duel. Doesn’t that sound like fun? We’ll have a little audience and...whoever wins well...lives,” he laughs and hops off the bed pretending to swing a sword around. “Whaddya say?”

Baekhyun glares at his mirror image and mumbles against the gag. “Whoops, sorry ‘bout that.”

He traipses over to remove the gag and once again taps Baekhyun’s face mockingly. “No.”

“No? But wouldn’t it be fun to see who the better version is? Personally, I’ve worked really hard on my skills and sharpening my senses. I couldn’t say much for you since you let that big oaf sneak up behind you,” he chortles, as Chanyeol’s clone walks into the room and glares at the latter. “No offense, sweetie, you’re still doing great.”

They roll their eyes and carefully watch Baekhyun. “Well, I had a feeling this would happen…so I’ll leave you two for a moment then,” there’s a mischievous glint in his eyes and the clone steps out of the room while the taller advances toward him with a flame that hisses.

“Keep your guard up,” Sehun huffs, as they land on the ground. Chanyeol supports his weight as he regains his footing from flying. “They have a knack for sneaking up on people.” Chanyeol hums in response and conjures some fire to light their way. The flames flicker as the wind whispers through the empty hallways. They cautiously make their way into the lab.

A few gurneys litter the hallways while a light blinks on and off at the far end of the hallway. Empty IV bags hang from a pole and drip with a mysterious black-ish liquid. They press forward through doors and are met with gas tanks holding multiple clones who are hooked up to a power source at their feet. 

“Holy shit,” Sehun mumbles. “There’s so many of them…”

“These ones don’t look too good though,” Chanyeol increases his flame to illuminate the hazy box in front of him containing a malformed version of himself. A clipboard hangs from the mid-section of each glass chamber. He picks one up and scans through the document. Sehun walks toward him and reads along. 

“So, these guys weren’t viable so they were terminated. It seems that they were supposed to be disposed of the day after the raid,” he mumbles and looks around the shadowy room. “We should keep going. Maybe we’ll happen upon them without any confrontation.”

“You sure are positive, Sehun,” Chanyeol bleakly jokes. They continue on through down the hallway. “Why do you suppose they want us here…?”

“Well, based on what Baekhyun told me about your encounter with Soo’s clone, they want revenge? They’re clones of us, so maybe they felt like they were inferior or something...” Chanyeol hums in agreement as scorch marks and bullet holes line the hallway walls. Multiple sections of it are reduced to piles of bricks that lay collecting dust and blatantly show the contents of the rooms that were meant to be hidden. Black wires and bits of clothing create odd shapes on the ground as the light casts shadows on their forms. Sehun yanks Chanyeol backwards and holds onto his wrist holding the fire. 

“Put that out,” he hisses as footsteps approach. They stare at the floor as a large, humanlike shadow comes in from the left wing. 

“...kidding me? I don’t want to see that shit,” a voice grumbles in discontent.

“Well, it's better than nothing,” the other voice responds. “Oy, where are you going? Not to check on the teleporter, are you?”

“So what,” they pause in the middle of the intersection causing Chanyeol and Sehun to freeze. Hyun tasked me with making sure he stays sedated.”

“He’s got enough shit in him to last him the rest of the day. Just come with me to check the cameras.”

“But-”

“Hůn, hanging around him won’t bring him back.”

A sigh, “Fine.” They continue walking down the hallway allowing Chanyeol and Sehun to relax slightly.

“Do you think we’ll have an opportunity to kill them without the whole ‘let’s see who’s better’ schtick? According to reports, the original is some pussy who can’t even manage an air slice,” Sehun’s clone mocks. “I doubt he'd be able to take me down.”

“You missed your chance to meet him last time he was here with their teleporter, he’s grown,” the latter quips. “Don’t underestimate our enemy.”

Their bickering becomes unintelligible until it disappears. 

“Holy shit,” Chanyeol whispers. “What the fuck.”

“I agree, but come on, Jongin must be on the left hand side,” he moves from behind Chanyeol and heads to the front. The latter’s hand stops him from moving any further from their safety of the darkness. 

“The cameras. They’re checking them right now. We have to wait for them to leave the room,” he hisses. “You don’t want to get this close only to be captured, right?”

Sehun purses his lips and retreats. “Fine.”

Baekhyun adjusts his mask as the putrid smell invades his nostrils. Rotting corpses line the walls and are sitting upright in the evaluation room. They watch the pair prepare for their match. He observes Baëkhyun as he casually rolls his wrist and his rapier forms in an instant; it’s just as brilliant as his own. A small smile blossoms on his thin lips. Baekhyun gets into a basic stance keeping his knees bent and prepared. “You’re so boring,” the other laughs before moving his head from side to side with a satisfying _crack_.

“En garde.” he huffs, shaking his non-dominant hand to rid himself of some nerves. “Pret.” 

The latter smirks, “Allez.” He lunges forward and taps Baekhyun’s mask off with the edge of his saber leaving a slight burn on his chin and nose. “Point!”

Baekhyun quickly brings a hand to his face. His sabre dissipates as he glares at his clone. They chortle and bow toward the corpses that begin to slump from the unsupported weight. “Thank you, thank you!”

“You’re not playing by the rules,” he mutters, getting back into position.

“There are rules?” Baëkhyun grins cheekily as he saunters back to his position opposite to Baekhyun. “I just wanted a fight, but it was fun saying the french!”

Baekhyun rolls his shoulders back and huffs. He summons his blade once more. “If you want to play then let’s fucking _play_.” 

Baekhyun rushes forward toward the unsuspecting latter and quickly swipes his sword toward their midsection hoping to leave a nice line on their clothing. He quickly moves backwards after his attack and checks the damage on his opponent. With a grunt, the clone bounds over with his blade and creates a neat arc that narrowly misses Baekhyun’s chest. His speed allows him to tackle Baekhyun to the ground and pin him down. He laughs mirthfully and his blade vanishes as he pulls himself up to straddle him. Baekhyun struggles against the weight and crosses his arms in front of his face. 

The latter continues to cackle as he grabs one of Baekhyun’s hands and pins it down to deliver a swift punch to his face. Baekhyun thrashes underneath in an attempt to get Baëkhyun off of him to no avail. “Give up already?” 

Baëkhyun then summons a small blade made of light and holds it against Baekhyun’s throat. The heat from the blade causes a mark to form; Baekhyun stills, as his clone leans in. He stares into Baekhyun’s eyes. “Where’s the fun in that?” he spits into his clone's face.

Baekhyun summons a dagger with his non-dominant hand and sticks into the clone’s side. He howls in pain and rolls off of Baekhyun, who then gets up and conjures his trusty rapier. The smell of burning skin and fabric mixes with the spoiling bodies causes him to gag. “You’ll pay for that!” The clone roars and he lunges at Baekhyun with fervor.

Sehun makes quick work of the computer controlling the cameras to find Jongin. “So, my guess was right...Okay, I’ll head over to him and we’ll meet you where Baekhyun is. Maybe, I’ll get a chance to show Hůn how much I’ve grown,” he rolls his eyes.

“Put him in his place,” Chanyeol lays a hand on his shoulder with a big grin. “I’ll see you soon.”

Sehun nods and jogs out of the room to fetch Jongin. Chanyeol checks the cameras one more time against the map they found to make sure he has Baekhyun’s location. “Alright, let’s do this.”

Chanyeol roams the halls that twist and turn seeing the occasional hospital gown, IV pole, and droid part litter the hallways as the lights flicker on and off. His hand is warm, as he weaves through the labyrinth. Fire burns in his veins the closer he gets to his destination. The smell of disinfectant transforms into something putrid. He gags as he races down the final hallway hearing grunts and the buzz of rapier made of light.

He rushes through the door in time to hear the cracking of bones and an ear piercing scream. “FUCK! OH GOD FUCK-” a swift kick to the face and a melodic laugh.

Chanyeol rushes toward the standing figure and thrusts his scalding hand in their direction missing them by an inch. He steadies himself, and his eyes dart around from watching the clone to Baekhyun. “Oh, you’re here! How exciting!”

Baëkhyun flits toward the stoic figure watching the battle with his arms crossed over his chest. “Yeøl, go take care of that one,” he smiles. “We want to show these scientists who’s best!” he jaunts over to the festering corpses and readjusts them. 

Chanyeol quickly helps Baekhyun up and mumbles into his ear while he continues to eye their mirror images. “Are you okay?”

“A few cuts and my hand is broken, but I’ll be fine,” he seethes while summoning his trusty rapier once more. Chanyeol nods in response and summons a fireball to throw at the Baekhyun’s clone. With a simple dodge, they dash toward him with the vibrant sword that Baekhyun parries easily. Another fireball is thrown from a different direction and Chanyeol turns his head to focus on his own clone. 

Chanyeøl’s fists are engulfed in flames and he runs toward him fearlessly. Chanyeol crosses his arms in front of him to deflect the punch before he summons a fireball to throw at the latter in the midst of the recoil. They stumble backwards and run at him again with the same fervor as before. He dodges the barrage of fists before being able to plant a well placed kick to the gut which causes the latter to fall on their back. Chanyeol takes the opportunity to pin them down, but before he could do anything, something pierces his arm and prevents him from moving.

The pain is intense as he feels light burn his skin and muscles. He howls in pain as he’s kicked to the ground, the dazzling blade slides out of his arm. Chanyeol curls into himself holding the area around his injured arm. “CHANYEOL!”

He can see Baekhyun make an attempt to come toward him only to be stopped by his clone who launches a flurry of fire from the palms of his hands. “Finished already?” the clone taunts.

Baëkhyun kicks him in the gut with a laugh. Chanyeol is splayed in front of him. They summon a smaller blade to prod at the gaping hole in his upper arm; he draws a straight line from the cavity to his wrist in one swift movement. The wound instantly cauterizes, but Baëkhyun digs his thumb into the cut and opens the burned vessels. Blood pours from his wounds and a few droplets land on the clone’s face. “Who fucking needs the originals when all they can do is this?”

He continues to laugh as Baekhyun concentrates the light in his hand to form a small beam aimed at Chanyeøl. The clone manages to dodge it but not without his midsection smouldering. They fall to their knees and hold their abdomen as Baekhyun bolts over with his rapier and pierces him through the chest. Their eyes widen and they begin to cough violently. Chanyeøl struggles against the blade in an attempt to get further from Baekhyun, but he pushes the blade further into the point where his hand enters the wound. It stretches around his skin causing the platelets to flow out and mar his clothing in red splotches. The clone cries out in pain and blood spurts from his mouth as he wheezes for breath.

Baekhyun releases an animalistic scream, as he pulls his hand from Chanyeøl’s body. He stands quietly with his chest heaving as the adrenaline courses through his veins. The euphoria of triumph makes him drunk with power and he turns toward his clone who continues to torture his lover. “Get the _fuck_ away from him!!”

“Or what?” they ask playfully, turning around and putting their bloodied hands on their face. 

“I’ll kill you!” he roars. Baekhyun emanates pure light from his body, blinding everyone in the room. 

His body moves of its own volition. He summons his trusty sword and lunges toward his clone with seemingly practiced movement. Upon contact, something burns his midsection. His world has gone dark and he convulses against the new sensation. Baekhyun moves his down to see what happened, but is unable to see anything. The pain intensifies and tries to free himself to no avail. “O-oh god, fuck, Chanyeol help me. Oh, god.”

He hears Baëkhyun’s weak laughter.

Baekhyun plunges his blade in deeper eliciting a groan, but not from where Baëkhyun laughed.

He freezes.

A soft _pop_ is heard and a _thud_. “Oh god.”

Sehun rushes to Baekhyun’s side while Jongin restrains Baëkhyun whose laughter grows. “Okay, okay calm down we can fix this just, uh, jesus. Okay, just uh...Well there won’t be bleeding so you can release your blade.”

Jongin teleports away with Baëkhyun. 

“S-se-sehun wh-what happened, oh god what happened,” his voice shakes like his hands do. “What did I do, oh no, I-I can’t see, I can’t-”

“ _Shhh_. Don’t worry. Just calm down and we’ll get you both some help,” he coaxes Baekhyun away from Chanyeol’s strained breathing.

“W-will he be alright?”

“Once Jongin returns, I’ll send him to go find some bandages. Maybe...maybe they’ll have a supplement or something to...y’know speed the healing process along,” Sehun rubs circles on his back despite the cuts on his own hands. “You’re lucky the blade cauterized the wound, so it won’t get infected and there’s not too much blood.”

Baekhyun exhales in relief but continues to tremble. “I’m going to go apply pressure on his wound, okay? I’m right here.”

“O-okay,” Baekhyun sobs from relief.

Chanyeol leads Baekhyun inside the bustling coffee shop. Mongryong tucks neatly underneath the chair his owner sits on. Baekhyun slides him a treat, as Chanyeol orders for them. 

He comes back with three cups. Coffees for the two of them and a smaller cup with some dog-friendly whipped cream. “This is for Mongryong,” Chanyeol gently places the cup onto Baekhyun’s palm who lowers it to the loaf of chub. He happily licks Baekhyun’s hand before lapping at his own treat, as Chanyeol places the drink in front of Baekhyun and guides his hands over to the protective sleeve. “That’s for you.”

“Thanks,” he smiles, bringing it to his lips and sighs contentedly at the warmth. Chanyeol watches him with a big grin on his face before taking a quick sip of his own drink. The leaves have started to change color, as the heat of summer begins to cool to more reasonable temperatures. He describes the little details outside the quaint shop, as Baekhyun scratches Mongryong behind the ears with a huge smile on his face. 

After they finish their coffees, Chanyeol pulls a bar of chocolate from his pocket and breaks off a piece for Baekhyun to enjoy. The latter feels it with some confusion before taking a bite. He laughs. “Where’s your face?”

Chanyeol walks over to the otherside of the table and holds Baekhyun’s hand in his and guides it to his cheek. “Why?”

“That day, you wanted to kiss me, right?”

“And?”

“Just get over here,” Chanyeol chuckles before leaning in to capture Baekhyun’s lips.

**Author's Note:**

>  **Author's Note:** YOOOOOO this beast is finished! I started this wild ride in November around when Obsession dropped and I HAD to write something. It's a little amalgamation of all of the EXO universes as best as I could put them together, so try to find the little connections ^^ BIG THANK YOU to the prompter for this lovely idea and P for being my rock through this process!! Most of all, THANK YOU TO THE MODS for organizing this fest I've absolutely adored all of these years. I'm so glad to finally be a part of it~ THANKS
> 
> Hope you enjoyed!


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